Critical Analysis of the New Territorial Ordering Plans (TOPS) of Colombia in the Framework of Climate Change and Extreme Events

In the present work, the new territorial ordering plans (TOPs) of the Colombia municipalities are analyzed in the framework of climate change and extreme events, said (TOPs) are the main instrument for planning Long Term and Urban and Rural Land Management of the municipalities that make up the Colombian territory and that, in addition, guide the physical development of the territory and regulate the use, transformation and occupation of the space as indicated by the National Planning Department (NPD) of Colombia.

The motivation for this work arises from the fact that 81% of the territorial ordering plans (TOPs) of the Colombian territory are outdated or not in force, which is both a great challenge and a great opportunity to include adaptation actions to the climate change and extreme events as well as actions for the fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals launched in January 2016 and that will guide the policies and financing of the United Nations Development Program ( UNDP) during the next 15 years (UNDP, 2018).

Therefore, within the present work several components of modern POTs are analyzed, among them, the scope of studies of threat and urban risk in relation to climate change and extreme events, given that the proposed philosophy for these new instruments of Planning of Long Term and Urban and Rural Land Management of the municipalities is to have an articulated vision of the territory where the protection areas are adequately identified, the areas exposed to threats and risks are defined to protect the integrity of the population and prepare to the nation for the post-conflict, among others.

Finally, a series of recommendations are made for the implementation of actions to adapt to climate change and extreme events in territorial ordering plans (TOPs) of new generation for the planning of flood-resilient cities and infrastructures.